INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES OF CARBON MANAGEMENT

International Perspectives of Carbon Management

Executive summary

The global carbon cycle involves important couplings between climate, atmospheric CO2 and the terrestrial and oceanic biospheres. The current transformation of the carbon cycle due to changes in climate and atmospheric composition is widely recognized as potentially dangerous for the biosphere and for the well-being of humankind, and therefore monitoring, understanding and predicting the evolution of the carbon cycle in the context of the whole biosphere is a challenge to the scientific community. This demands interdisciplinary research and new approaches for studying geographical and temporal distributions of carbon pools and fluxes, control and feedback mechanisms of the carbon-climate system, points of intervention and windows of opportunity for managing the carbon-climate-human system

Table of content

Introduction1

Strategies of different states4

United Kingdom4

Strategies of Japan7

Strategies of Canada13

Carbon Management Options16

previous strategies fail17

Recommendations19



International Perspectives of Carbon Management

Introduction

Carbon management is a key resource management and policy issue of the 21st century. The atmospheric concentration of CO2 increased by about 25% during the 20th century and is continuing to increase in part due to the burning of fossil fuels and changes in land cover and land use. Increases in the atmospheric concentration of CO2 and other greenhouse gases are likely to produce significant changes in global climate and accompanying changes in the energy and water cycles. These changes will have profound impacts on the Earth's ecosystems and society. New technologies for reduction of carbon emissions and storage of carbon deep underground or in the oceans are two principal options to achieve long-term reduction in the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. As these technologies are being developed and applied, a reduction in the rate of increase in atmospheric CO2 may be possible by increasing storage of carbon in soils, above ground biomass and aquatic environments (Alvarez, 1995). Such carbon sinks already absorb about 50% of the carbon emitted into the atmosphere annually. Research indicates that changes in land management practices can enhance terrestrial and oceanic carbon sinks. In developing a science-based carbon management regime, knowledge of the carbon cycle is fully exploited to assist operational agencies fulfill their mandates to manage carbon and to support local, regional, national, and global policy and planning for control of carbon in the environment. The application element also collaborates with academic and government laboratories and operational agencies in the development, testing, and implementation of new technologies for measuring, monitoring, and validation of carbon management practices. The monitoring of carbon emissions and their removal through carbon sequestration; that is the storage of carbon dioxide, either through the planting of trees, or by storing it underground in exhausted oil and gas fields, deep underground, or even below the ocean thermo-cline. These measures are to cut the level of atmospheric carbon dioxide in order to reduce global warming (Alvarez, 1995).

Achieving substantial and sustained reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases will require a broad and diverse set of actions encompassing renewable energy sources (solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and others); non-carbon generation (nuclear and fossil ...